A Close Shave
by Jedikma
Summary: A little vignette explaining why Obi-Wan grew his beard. (with a touch of Siriwan)


Title: **A Close Shave**

Author: Jedikma

Characters: Obi-Wan Kenobi

Timeframe: pre-TPM to ANH

A/N: This was written in response to a challenge:  In one post, show Obi-Wan doing the same activity at different ages and show how his perspectives on it differ as he matures.

Disclaimer: The usual disclaimers apply.

**A Close Shave**

Qui-Gon hadn't shown him how to do it, he just instructed him. After all, Qui-Gon had a full bearded face and wasn't about to remove it just so he could show his padawan how to shave.

His Master bought him the circular cake of soap and ceramic mug to put it in. The big thick brush to go with it had a shell handle. Qui-Gon swore it would be the best way to get a smooth shave and keep his skin from drying out too much from the daily habit of a close shave.

It was just now, in his late teens, that he was beginning to shave everyday. It took a long time for him to reach this stage and now he somehow decided he was a true man. Although, he admitted, it could be annoying to have to shave so often.

Obi-Wan splashed warm water on his face, then moistened the soap and dipped the brush into it. He moved it around in a circular motion and watched as the soap created a thick lather. He may be considered a man now, but the kid in him still liked to make the lather thick and foamy.

Scooping the lather on the brush, he brought it to his face and began to cover his cheeks and chin with the lightly fragrant soap, again with a circular motion. Then he lathered under his nose, being careful not to get the soap on his lips. It may smell good, but the taste was unpleasant. Finally, he brushed soap under his chin and along the top of his neck.

Picking up the razor he started at the top of his cheek with downward strokes pushing off the lather as he went. Occasionally he had to rinse off the razor under the water and start again until all the lather was removed from his face. His skin felt sensitive to the stroke of the razor and it burned just a little.

"Ouch!" The first nick of the day appeared at the base of his jaw, near the cleft in his chin. He quickly dabbed it with a tissue.

Whisker removal continued as he proceeded to shave the other cheek and then under his lip.

"Ouch!" A second tiny nick appeared just under his nose.

"Blast!" he muttered as he looked closely at his reflection in the mirror.

Obi-Wan rinsed the razor off again and shaved under his chin using upward strokes.

"Ouch!" A third nick right at the top of his neck.

"This is awful! Now I know why my Master grows out his beard. Shaving is a pain in the neck!"

As he rinsed and dried off his off his face, he did a final survey of the damage. He looked at his reflection in frustration.

"I can't wait to become a Knight. The first thing I am going to do is grow a beard!"

* * *

Obi-Wan looked at his reflection in the mirror and stroked his beard. He had been a Knight and Master for the better part of five years now and he had kept the promise to himself to grow his beard. 

He liked it, too.

He liked that he no longer had a daily struggle with a razor, but he also liked the beard because he felt that it made him look older. Many were skeptical that he could be a Master so soon upon being knighted. Looking older helped him feel more confident about the situation.

A close shave was no longer important, but regular trimming was.

Obi-Wan took a comb and with downward strokes combed out his mustache. With a small pair of scissors he evened out the length of the hair under his nose. Then he combed his beard and trimmed it carefully.

He thought about how comfortable he had become with the hair on his face and then she returned. At first she teased him about his beard. How he looked like his former Master and how he sought to honor his Master. He took it as a compliment but, strangely, for a very short period of time he considered shaving it off. Then one day he caught her staring at him, lost in thought.

"What?" he asked as the deep blue of her eyes washed over him.

She snapped out of her state of distraction and smiled as her face flushed slightly. "Oh nothing. I must be tired."

Not willing to leave the moment alone he prodded her to confess what she was thinking. "I was obviously immersed in different life," she answered as she looked away. "I was just thinking that I have never kissed a man with a beard."

Ever since then he thought many times how he would love to satisfy her curiosity. Maybe, just maybe, one day the opportunity would present itself and he would kiss her. It wasn't something a Jedi should think about, but every so often it couldn't hurt to indulge just a little.

He finished up his trimming and reached for the cologne on the shelf in front of him. Normally, he didn't wear the stuff, but she had given it to him as a gift and he was going to work with her today. He didn't wear it to make her happy. He wore it because he noticed that she stood a little closer when he had it on.

He poured a little of the fragrance in his hand, rubbed his hands together and then applied it to his beard.

She also argued with him less when he wore it.

He was once again going to enjoy working with her.

* * *

He couldn't deny that he was looking older. The reflection in the mirror did not lie. His beard was getting more and more gray. 

So many times he didn't bother to keep his beard trimmed and just let it grow wild. After all, he lived the life of a hermit and he rarely saw or kept the company of other beings.

On the occasions when he knew he needed to go into the town of Anchorhead, he took up a small pair of scissors and proceeded to trim the hair on his face. He was considered to be a crazy old man by the townspeople, but he didn't need to look the part. Not in public anyway.

The way he trimmed his beard hadn't changed. First the mustache, then the beard and finally the stray whiskers at the top of his neck.

He remembered instructing Anakin on the art of shaving. He did exactly to Anakin what his Master had done to him. He told him how to do it, he didn't show him by shaving off his own beard. Anakn never grew a beard; he preferred to be clean-shaven. Or perhaps, Obi-Wan thought ironically, his wife preferred him that way.

Obi-Wan still had a small bottle of the cologne that was Siri's favorite fragrance, but now it was empty. A wisp of a scent could still be detected when he opened the lid and he remembered her so well.

She finally found out what it was like to kiss a man with a beard and, in return, he found out how soft and sweet her lips were.

Obi-Wan smiled.

Perhaps he should start grooming more regularly. The time was nearing when Luke would come and he needed to be ready. No need to look like the crazy man that he was rumored to be and scare the boy.

Obi-Wan set out the scissors and mirror where they could remind him to use them again on a regular basis.

_fin_


End file.
